How can I?
My first thought, It takes a club.
Hearing the rumble of more bikes pulling in somehow soothes the ache that is deep inside me. Dia is right: It takes a club.
Three Years Later…
Crash
For the first time in a long time, things are solid. Business is good, the club is good, and life is damn good.
Honestly, I never would have thought Marie and I would have made it this far. Yet, we’re still together, and our little girl Dina is off to college. The empty nest has only made my wife want to do more things with me, like car shows. We now live in a nice beach house; that was her dream.
With as much shit as she has put up with over the years, I’ll give her a mansion in Malibu if that’s what she wants, even if it kills me to make the payment. In the end, she doesn’t want any of that, though; she simply wants me and the life we have together.
Today, we’re on our way to a Mustang show for her. I’m a Chevy bowtie man, but she’s a “wild horses have to run” kind of woman. Secretly, I think she loves her Mustangs just to challenge me. Some couples have competing football teams; we like different brands for our rides. It keeps it fresh.
Dina usually would go with us, but being in Charlotte, she has college life and better things to do.
Roundman, being the good friend he is, made sure we expanded the club to that area, starting a Catawba Hellions’ charter. The guys there keep an eye on Dina and her best friend Maggie for us.
Family. We have all come from different walks and different backgrounds, but we managed to become the support system each of us has needed.
Roundman, Danza, Frisco, and I started something years ago for protection that has grown into a foundation for future generations to never be alone. Since Roundman and I separated the businesses, I have moved more to restoration projects, leaving the bikes and general car maintenance to him and the Hellions.
I think back to that day with Clive so long ago. If Blaine hadn’t taken the lead that day, I can’t say I would be here today. I don’t know that I would have been able to think clear-headed enough to grab the weapons and fire to save myself and Clive.
Roundman has led the club from the ground up and into something that is not only solid, but also profitable. With each passing year, I find myself more thankful for what we have built in the Hellions.
I’m also thankful that, years ago, Marie took a chance to ride with me one night. Sure, I just wanted to have sex with her in the beginning, but over time, we built something more, something real. And here we are today, still strong, even if our start wasn’t the thing they write romance stories about.
“Rocky,” Marie says beside me over the rumble of her ’Stang.
“Yeah?”
“What’s got you so lost in thought?”
I smile at the beautiful woman beside me. “Thinking about how far we’ve come.”
She laughs. “The miles behind us only help us navigate the road ahead.”
“I love you.” I lean over and kiss her cheek before pulling out onto the highway.
With her hand in mine, we head home with our best in show trophy in the trunk. We had a damn good day, just the two of us.
The light is red up ahead, but the eighteen wheeler is sitting still and slightly back from the light. I can’t help noticing it and wonder if he’s broken down. I’m no diesel mechanic, but he’s not in the best place to be stuck.
The light changes to green, so I keep the gas pedal down to go through just as I notice the truck moving again. What the hell? My mind races as I try to get us through safely.
Bright lights glare through the windows at us before I feel the clip of the truck to the back of the small car. My wife cries out as glass breaks around us and the car spins.
I drop her hand as I grip the steering wheel, trying to turn in the opposite direction to stop the rotation, but we roll. The metal continues to crunch around us as I hit my head on the roof, the lap belts doing nothing to secure either of us to the seats.
Marie reaches out, grabbing my hand, while I hold tightly to hers when the car stops.
“Love you, baby. You okay?” I ask her as pain shoots through my body.
We are both curled into the roof of the car that sits upside down. Our bodies are at unusual angles, and I immediately feel pain shoot through my legs, up my spine, and into my neck.
“It hurts,” she whispers.
“I know, baby. I’m gonna get us out of here,” I try to reassure her.
Turning my head as best I can, I look for exit strategies. Then we hear the truck coming toward us, and panic fills me as my wife cries out into the night.
The headlights shining in are blinding. The sounds of gears grinding echoes through the air as the rig comes closer and gains speed.
“I love you, Tommy,” my wife’s last words register at the same time the impact comes and darkness closes in on us both.
Thanks for standing by me, Marie, my love, is my last thought before I feel nothing anymore.
How did it all go so wrong? It seems, every time we finally settle down, the bitch called life throws another curveball our way.
A drunk driver in a beverage distribution truck hit and killed Rocky and Marie Fowler.
Tommy-boy is gone. The man who has been by mine and Roundman’s sides since elementary school isn’t coming home. I can’t think of a time when the three of us have been apart other than when Blaine and I served our time in jail and Rocky stepped up, taking care of our wives and girls while we sat in our cells, counting down the days.
Looking to the blue sky above, I say, “I promise you, brother, we’re gonna make sure business is handled, and Dina is set for life. You took care of my house when I couldn’t, and I’m gonna take care of yours.” I toss a finger to the sky, giving my man my word.
I’ve done so much wrong over the years. Pain runs deeper inside me than I’ve ever let on. Secrets hold me back from being the man I should be, a man like Rocky was. Today, I change all that.
I owe my wife a lifetime of love, devotion, and no more messing things up for us. She’s held me down when any other woman would have left. She deserves better than what she has in me, but I’m a selfish fuck who won’t let her go, either.
When I step inside the home I share with Mary Alice, I hear the sounds of Sass giving her mother hell.
“I wanna go to Doll’s, and you can’t stop me,” she says with every bit of attitude that gave her the nickname Sass. “It’s to study. Dad isn’t going to let me not have a study partner. He’ll put you in your place, ol’ lady.”
I take a moment to think. She’s right. Any other day, any other time, I would probably go inside and tell Mary Alice to let Savannah go. When she tried to protest, I would tell her I’m the man and I overrule her.
I’m a fucking ass is what I am.
Kicking my boots off at the front door, I stand there as my daughter’s eyes come to me.
“Tell Mom I can go study.”
Mary Alice looks down, avoiding me. She already assumes I’m going to give in to Sass. My wife has lost her fight.
I did this to her.
I’ve spent too many years on the road. For too many years, I’ve pushed her away. Too many mistakes have come between us, and she doesn’t even know them all.
“Savannah, you need to tame your shit. You aren’t going anywhere except to your room.”
Mary Alice looks up at me with surprise in her eyes.
I simply nod at her so she silently knows I have her back.
Sass doesn’t move, so I look at my teen daughter. “I’m not one for repeatin’ myself.”
She stomps off, and I fight the urge to yank her up for the disrespect. I have too much to handle with my wife to deal with the dramatics of a hormonal young woman.
“Mary Alice,” I say, losing some of the confidence I had worked up to have this talk.
She makes her way to me, and I take her by the hand to guide her into our bedroom.
“Rhett, you’re making me nervous,” she tells me honestly as I point for her to sit on the bed.
Dropping to my knees in front of her, I hold nothing back. “I messed up, baby. I’ve messed up for a lot of damn years.”
She cradles each side of my face with her soft hands, forcing me to look her in the eyes. “Tell me,” she whispers with tears running down her cheeks. “Say the words; give me it all.”
“You have been rock solid. You stood by me when everyone else would have left.”
“Tell me, Rhett.”
“I’m on my knees, Mary Alice. I’m on my knees to promise you I’ve changed.”
“Say the words, Rhett Perchton. Tell me.”
“It won’t happen again. From this day forward, ride until we die, Mary Alice. I promise you.” I choke on my emotions.
“Rhett,” she whispers, “just say the words. Own it. I need you to give that to me. I need you to accept responsibility. I’m not crazy, it’s not lost, and I didn’t stay when everything told me to leave for nothing. Dammit, Rhett, tell me.”
“I haven’t kept my vows,” I say the words, forcing her hands off my face so I can drop my head and not watch her eyes as I kill the life we have built together.
Two soft hands grip my chin, forcing me to look at her again. I can’t get a read on her because the tears are falling so fast, and she keeps blinking. I feel a slight tremble as she starts to speak then stops.
After a brief pause, she firmly tells me, “I already know.”
I swear the world stops spinning.
“How?”
“A woman knows when her man ain’t right. A woman knows when a man who’s been good goes bad. I’ve known for a long time.”
“Yet you’ve stayed.”
“I gave my word, Rhett. Unlike some of us in the Perchton family, I keep it. I asked you to let me go. You came home from jail, and you said you would change. You said you didn’t want to let me go. Why should you, really? I stayed and stayed, and even when I knew what a dirty bastard you were, I stuck by you. I kept my vows. I kept my love. I gave you my loyalty.”
With those words, she guts me. Everything crashes around me.
Holding her face in my hands, my tear-filled eyes meet hers. “I promise you with everything good we’ve ever shared and built together, no more fuck ups, Mary Alice. I give you my all. I know you don’t believe it, but I’ve lost too much, and I won’t lose you. Ride until we die, baby. I’m yours and no one else’s. I love you, Mary Alice. I fucked up more than I can count, but believe me; I love you. I will spend the rest of the days we have together giving you everything I should have been giving you all along. I will have your back like you’ve had mine. I’m a changed man. Mary Alice, please give me a chance to show you.”
She says nothing as I press my lips to hers. For what feels like a lifetime, she doesn’t move. Then, finally, she wraps her arms around my neck and opens, pulling me to her.
Sealed with a kiss, I will give this woman everything she deserves and more from this day forward. With no excuses for my past and no cushion for my future, I will not fail her again.
Today, I lost a brother. It opened my eyes to everything I’ve done wrong over the years. I took the love of a once vibrant woman, and I slowly killed her, not with my words, but with my actions.
Over and over again, I could have made it right. I should have made things right. I didn’t.
No, I failed. I failed my wife. I failed my family. In turn, I also failed my club.
You’ve got to stand for something, as the saying goes, or you’ll fall for anything. The Hellions have always and will always be about family, about taking a brother’s back, even if the brother is no longer with us. Rocky stood by me through some of the hardest times in my life. His death will not go unpunished. Even if my pride alone causes me to fall, I do so with a fight for my brother’s legacy.
~Roundman~
Threats Keep Coming
We have all filed into the cave for sermon. This is our patched members only meeting.
Tripp and Rex took a run for Ravage MC. In the process, we were tailed, but not over the transport.
Fury MC has decided their time has come.
It’s been over twenty damn years since they rolled into town to negotiate with Clive, and now they want to show up for some sort of retribution. In the lifetime between our first encounter and now, our family has grown. We have loved, we have lost, and we damn sure have a lot more to lose now than we did then.
I bang the gavel down on the table. Sermon opens as Danza flips the door lock, securing the room.
“I’m not gonna beat around the bush, boys. We’ve lost too damn much,” I begin. “What do we have on Paul Watson?” I look at Frisco, feeling the eyes of the younger members watching me, not knowing the name.
“Paul Shannon Watson, male, sixty-two years old. Currently resides in West Palm Beach, Florida. He previously served a nickel for weapons. He has one ex-wife, Jayne Wheatley, and one child resulting from the relationship. He patched to Fury MC in 1981, earned his diamond one-percenter patch in 1986. He has nine kills to his name for the club, and his current rank is president.”
Danza stands, unable to remain still. “How does Fury tie into Rocky’s crash? The cops tested the man; he was drunk. The beverage company even paid Dina out in a settlement.”
“Fury runs transports with the company and holds a thirty percent stake in the company,” Frisco answers, moving papers around in the file.
“Are you shittin’ me?” I stand then pace the room right beside Danza. “We went soft. We let them sneak up on us. All this fucking time, they have been plannin’, and we sat back and let them.”
“How were we supposed to know?” Danza says, running his hands through his hair. “We were, like, fucking twenty when this shit started. Hell, we didn’t know shit about a club back then. Think of all the mistakes we made. Shit, we landed our own asses in jail. Come on, Roundman, we had no way to know.”
“Get Jayne and the kid here. It’s time to find out what’s gone on with Watson the last two decades. No better way than an ex-wife,” I order.
Finishing the meeting, I dismiss the club, feeling the weight of it all bear down on my shoulders. We slipped up. I slipped up, and it cost my best friend and his wife their lives.
I won’t slip up again. Paul Watson should have paid the price years ago for what happened with Clive. I let him off the hook.
Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, time to meet the reaper. And I’m going to be delivering his personal invitation to Hell.
Truth Comes Out
As soon as Roundman issues the order, I head home to pack a bag.
Strolling inside my house, my mind is on what I need to pack. However, then I hear the sounds of Amy talking to herself and stop in my tracks.
“Breathe in and out.” She inhales sharply and exhales loudly. “Gotta calm down, Amy. He’s dead. The shop is gone. No one will get to you again.”
Amy Mitchell, the woman who has lived with me and worked with me for years now. She’s a beautiful young woman with long brown hair, bright green eyes, and the hourglass figure that gets any red-blooded man hard. She’s a beautiful person inside and out, but things between us are so beyond complicated.
She first showed up at the Hellions’ compound with Felix Delatorre. He had threatened her family to get her to ship stuff for him, and then she ended up a bigger pawn in his game when Doll tried to help the woman.
When we set up the raid on Delatorre, Amy stepped in to help the Hellions. For that, I brought her back home. Since she’s been here, we have had years of battling her anxiety and panic attacks.
She lives here with me. For about a year, I had to sleep with her in my arms in order for her to actually sleep. It’s taken time to get her in her own room, but we are there now. At least I can rub one out privately when the urge hits me.
In a different lifetime, things may have worked out in another way for the two of us. But,
long ago, I learned this life isn’t for everyone. She’s been through enough without me trying to remotely complicate anything else for either of us.
When I hit her bedroom door, I see her in some yoga pose, talking to herself. Her head is down, her ass is in the air, and she’s trying to calm her breathing.
“Baby, you should stand up straight so all the blood ain’t rushin’ to your head.”
She spreads her legs wide and peeks at me from between them. “Trying relaxing techniques. It’s called Downward-Facing Dog.”
“Looks to me like an invitation to take you from behind,” I tell her honestly, fighting my dick from getting hard at the mere thought of fucking her.
“You big tease.” She smiles at me, finally standing up and getting her spankable ass out of my face.
“Gotta take a trip for a while. The boys will be around if you need something. You can crash with Sass and Tank if you get too nervous. I’m sure she would love the help with Red.”
Walking over to me wearing her workout pants and tank top that has her breasts pushing out of the top, thanks to her bra, she reaches up and pats my chest. Fire shoots through me like it does every time she touches me.
“Frisco, this ain’t the first time you’ve had to leave me. I’m okay. I have good days and bad days, and I deal with it. You do what you gotta do.”
“It’s good to see you so strong.”
She slides her hand up to my cheek, brushing my goatee with her thumb. “Thanks to you, I am. All thanks to you.”
I wrap my arms around her and pull her close. “You always had it inside you. Be proud, Amy. You never let him break you.”
She hugs me tightly before pulling slowly away. I can see the emotions she’s trying to hold back in her eyes.
“Gotta get you packed and on the road,” she says with a rasp in her voice before stepping away.
Going to my room, I head straight to the bathroom to shower.
Originals Ride: Hellions Motorcycle Club (Hellions Ride Book 8) Page 8
